"Every major publisher has approached us to review their old Kinect and Wii catalogue" – Nex Playground is spoilt for choice as its international rollout continues
With over a million units sold, and approaching a million paying subscribers using them, the next step in Nex Playground's global expansion – backed by fresh investmnent and an expanded leadership team including EA founder Bing Gordon and former Niantic and Zynga CFO Jeff Shouger – is Germany. The family-friendly micro-console will officially release in the territory later this year, retailing at…
Nex Playground, a micro-console family-friendly platform, is set to launch in Germany later this year. The device, which has sold over a million units and has over a million paying subscribers, is part of the company's global expansion backed by fresh investment and an expanded leadership team. The console will retail at €319 in Germany.
The company has already seen success in the UK, where it outsold Xbox over Black Friday and March launch of a Dr Who title to its subscription-based catalogue. Nex Team president Thomas Kang attributes the platform's success to its omnichannel strategy, which includes retail locations like Smyths, Argos, TikTok and Amazon. TikTok, in particular, has proven to be an effective channel for discovery and conversion.
The platform currently offers a curated catalogue of over 60 games, enough to create a discovery problem for users. To address this, Nex Playground is implementing features such as the ability to favourite games, an editorally curated 'star pick', and using the device's camera and playing history to surface games suited to each user. There is also potential for user surveys to provide further personalization.
Every major publisher has approached Nex Playground to review their old Kinect and Wii catalogue, considering their IPs. The company is selective about its IP partners, aiming to work with quality studios to build high-quality games for the platform. Nex Playground has already launched Freefall Racers, a 2013 Kinect title, which is being played by 150,000 families after its first month.
Nex Playground has also partnered with Sega and Bandai Namco for Sonic Forces: Rival Rush and Pac-Man, respectively. Despite ongoing component and memory shortages, Nex Playground remains committed to keeping its hardware affordable. The price of the device and its subscription service, Play Pass, will remain unchanged despite cost increases. The company's focus is on delivering high-quality games for a family-friendly experience.
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